Ocampo, Esmeralda A.

3CHEM1

I. EXPERIMENT 5: Bomb Calorimetry

II. OBJECTIVES:
The purpose of the simulated experiment was to apply concepts of heat capacity, first law
of thermodynamics, internal energy and enthalpy, to set up a bomb calorimeter, and to calculate the
heat of combustion of an organic compound from the experimental data.

III. METHODOLOGY

Assembly of the bomb

Figure 1. Assembly of the bomb

For the assembly of the bomb, first a 4 piece of fuse wire and a sample pellet was weighed to 0.1
mg. Second, the pellet was placed in a clean stainless steel crucible (cup). Third, the inner part of the bomb
was placed in its holder. Fourth, the wire was wired through the electrodes and was wrapped securely
around the posts. Fifth, the cup was placed with the pellet in the ring of the electrode. Sixth, the wire was
bent down into the cup so that it holds the pellet in place, and doesn’t touch any metal parts. Seventh, an
amount of 1.00 mL of water was placed in the body if the bomb. Eight, the inner part was placed into the
body of the bomb, and lastly, the cap ring was screwed securely onto the body.
Pressurizing the Bomb

Figure 2. Set-up in pressurizing the bomb

The main valve was first opened on the cylinder, and it was made sure that the pressure was shown.
The quick-release valve was closed, and the hose was snapped onto the bomb fitting. The vent valve was
closed on the bomb. The filling valve was opened and the pressure was brought to 20 atm or 300 psig. The
vent valve on the valve was then opened. Steps 4-6 were repeated to remove all nitrogen from the bomb.
Steps 4-5 were also repeated to pressurize the bomb. The quick-release valve was opened, and lastly the
filling hose was removed.

Set-up of the Apparatus

In checking the placements of the apparatus, first the bomb was put on the raised seat in the bucket.
The bucket was put on the footings in the shell, and it was taken note that the larger open area should be
closer to the monitor. The lid assembly was seated on the shell. It was made sure that the stirrer spins freely.
It was disassembled and the bomb was left on the bucket. An amount of 2.000 liters of distilled water at 24-
25 O C was prepared and was poured carefully into the bucket. The bucket was then replaced in the shell.
The firing wires were connected to the bomb. The lid assembly was seated. The drive belt was placed in
place, and the motor was started. Lastly, the thermometer was carefully assembly.

Simulation of the experiment

Determination of the Calorimeter Constant with Benzoic Acid as Standard

For the simulation of the determination of the calorimeter constant, first on the opening screen, the
Choose a sample was clicked. Second, the button next to the Benzoic acid was clicked, and it was taken to
the balance. The sample weight was recorded about (about 1 gram). Fourth, the weight of the wire before
was recorded. Fifth, the button burn was clicked and a graph was created. Sixth, the weight of the wire was
recorded after. Seventh, the button extrapolate was clicked. Eight, the blue arrows were clicked to position
the vertical blue line so as to equate the two enclosed. Ninth, the initial t(init) and final t(final) temperatures
were recorded. Tenth, the constants were clicked to obtain the energy equivalents of benzoic acid and iron
wire. The energy released in the combustion: Energy Released (J) = 26425(Sample Weight) + 5858 (wire
before - wire after) and the Calorimeter Constant (Ceq): Ceq(J/K) = Energy Released/[t(final) - t(init) were
both calculated.

Determination of the Enthalpy of Combustion of Lauric acid

For the determination of the enthalpy of combustion of a compound, steps 1-10 from above were
repeated, choosing one of the other compounds in place of Benzoic Acid. The molar mass (M) of the
compound from its chemical formula was then calculated using the formula n(moles) = Sample Weight/M .
The total energy released in the combustion (ΔU) was also calculated using the formula: ΔU(J) = - Ceq[t(final)
- t(init)] + 5858(wire before - wire after). The energy released per mole of compound burned were computed
using the formula (ΔUm): ΔUm(J/mole) = ΔU(J)/n(moles). The combustion reaction was balanced for one
mole of compound, and the change in the number of moles of gas was calculated using the formula (ΔNG):
ΔNG = moles of CO2 formed - moles of O2 consumed. The molar enthalpy of combustion was calculated
using the formula ΔHm = ΔUm + ΔngasRT. Lastly, it was divided by 1000 to obtain the molar enthalpy of
combustion in kJ/mole.

IV. RESULTS

From the determination of calorimeter constant with benzoic acid as standard and the enthalpy of
combustion of a compound, the following data were obtained.

Determination of the Calorimeter Constant with Benzoic Acid as Standard

Figure 3. Curve for the combustion of benzoic acid

Determination of the Enthalpy of Combustion of Lauric acid

Figure 3. Curve for the combustion of lauric acid

V. CALCULATION

Determination of the Energy released Calorimeter Constant with Benzoic Acid as Standard

Sample: benzoic acid (C7H6O2)

Molar mass: 122.12 g/mol
Weight of the sample: 0.9448
Weight of wire before: 0.0269 g
Weight of the wire after: 0.0185 g
Wire lost: 0.0084 g
Tfinal: 26.315 ℃ = 299.465 K
Tinitial: 24.094 ℃= 297.244 K
ΔT: 2.221 K
Standard enthalpy of combustion of benzoic acid: 26425 J/mol

Energy Released (J) = 26425 (Sample Weight) + 5858 (wire before - wire after)
J J
energy released = (26425 x 0.9448 g) + (5858 x 0.0084 g) = 𝟐𝟔𝟔𝟑𝟑. 𝟕𝟏 𝐉
mol mol

Calorimeter Constant (Ceq): Ceq(J/K) = Energy Released/[t(final) - t(init

26633.71 𝐽
𝐶𝑒𝑞 = = 𝟏𝟏𝟗𝟗𝟏. 𝟕𝟔 𝑱/𝑲
2.221 𝐾

Determination of the Enthalpy of Combustion of Lauric Acid

Sample: Lauric Acid (C12H24O2)

Molar mass: 200. 311 g/mol
Weight of the sample: 1.0663 g
Weight of wire before: 0.0226 g
Weight of the wire after: 0.0161 g
Wire lost: 0.0065 g
Tfinal: 27.683 ℃ = 300.833 K
Tinitial: 24.196 ℃ = 297.346 K
ΔT: 3.487 K

Standard enthalpy of combustion of lauric acid: 7377000 J/mol (7377 kJ/mol)

𝐽 𝐽
𝑒𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑔𝑦 𝑟𝑒𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑒𝑑 = (7377000 𝑥 1.0663 g) + (5858 𝑥 0.0065 𝑔) = 𝟕𝟖𝟔𝟔𝟏𝟑𝟑. 𝟏𝟖 𝑱
𝑚𝑜𝑙 𝑚𝑜𝑙

𝟕𝟖𝟔𝟔𝟏𝟑𝟑. 𝟏𝟖 𝑱
𝐶𝑒𝑞 = = 𝟐𝟐𝟓𝟓𝟖𝟒𝟓. 𝟒𝟖 𝑱/𝑲
3.487 𝐾

Using the ratio of the sample weight to the molar mass of the compound, the number of moles was
calculated.

𝑛 = 1.0663 g/200. 311 g/mol = 𝟎. 𝟎𝟎𝟓𝟑𝟐𝟑 𝒎𝒐𝒍

Total energy released during combustion

𝛥U(J) = - Ceq[t(final) - t(init)] + 5858(wire before - wire after)

J 𝐽
𝛥𝑈 = 2255845.48 (3.487 K) + 5858 (0.0065 𝑔) = 7866171.27 𝐽
K 𝑚𝑜𝑙

7866171.27 𝐽
𝛥𝑈𝑚 = = 1477770293 𝐽/𝑚𝑜𝑙
0.005323 𝑚𝑜𝑙

Using the chemical reaction of the combustion of lauric acid:

C12H24O2 + 17 O2 → 12 CO2 + 12 H2O

Δngas = moles of CO2 formed - moles of O2 consumed

𝛥ngas = 12-17 = -5 mols

The molar enthalpy of combustion was calculated using the formula:

𝛥𝐻𝑚 = 𝛥𝑈𝑚 + 𝛥𝑛𝑔𝑎𝑠𝑅𝑇

𝐽
𝛥𝐻 = 1477770293 𝐽/𝑚𝑜𝑙 + ((−5) (8.314 𝑚𝑜𝑙 . 𝐾) (298 𝐾))= 1477757905 𝐽/𝑚𝑜𝑙

𝒌𝑱
𝛥𝐻𝑚 = 𝟏𝟒𝟕𝟕𝟕𝟓𝟕. 𝟗𝟏
𝒎𝒐𝒍
VI. CONCLUSION

The simulated experiment on bomb calorimetry allowed to apply the concepts of

thermodynamics and thermochemistry. The results obtain from the experiment were used to
calculate the heat of combustion of an organic compound from the experimental data. Benzoic
acid was used in the experiment, because it is a crystalline solid that can be obtained in high
purity. The heat that was released by a reaction was measured through the bomb calorimeter since
the energy released is absorbed by the water in the apparatus. Hence, the energy released is equal
to the energy absorbed.

The purpose of the simulated experiment was met because, the concepts of heat capacity,
first law of thermodynamics, internal energy and enthalpy were applied, and the set-up of a
calorimeter was performed and understood. Additionally, the heat of combustion of an organic
compound from the experimental data was also calculated.